{"id":486495,"date":"2026-03-31T09:56:41","date_gmt":"2026-03-31T13:56:41","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/hockey\/?p=486495"},"modified":"2026-03-31T09:56:41","modified_gmt":"2026-03-31T13:56:41","slug":"nhl-predictions-new-york-islanders-vs-buffalo-sabres-march-31","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/hockey\/2026\/03\/31\/nhl-predictions-new-york-islanders-vs-buffalo-sabres-march-31\/","title":{"rendered":"NHL Predictions: New York Islanders vs Buffalo Sabres, March 31"},"content":{"rendered":"

Welcome back to NHL Predictions. Each day, our writers here at\u00a0<\/span>Last Word On Hockey<\/em> look at the games and give in-depth analysis. Our team breaks down the key matchups, storylines, and stats, then makes predictions based on how they might play out. Our featured game of this edition is thane York Islanders taking on the Buffalo Sabres<\/span>to check out more\u00a0NHL Predictions<\/a>, as our writers continue this series throughout the 2025-26 season.<\/span><\/p>\n

NHL Predictions<\/h2>\n

New York Islanders vs Buffalo Sabres<\/h2>\n

Head-to-Head: Islanders 0-2 Sabres<\/h3>\n

How to Watch<\/a>:\u00a0<\/span>US TV: MSG Buffalo; MSGSN2; ESPN+. Canada TV: Sportsnet+.<\/strong><\/amp-ad><\/amp-fx-flying-carpet><\/h3>\n

Time:<\/strong>\u00a07 <\/span>p.m. Eastern Daylight Time (EDT)<\/p>\n

We open up NHL predictions with our featured game<\/a> between the New York Islanders<\/a> and the Buffalo Sabres.<\/a> The Isles are expected to start David Rittich<\/a> after Ilya Sorokin<\/a> got the call against the Pittsburgh Penguins.<\/a> However, always check social media before locking in a daily fantasy starter. New York holds the last automatic Metropolitan Division playoff spot, but doesn’t want to get sucked into the Wild Card race. Rookie sensation Matthew Schaefer<\/a> has five assists in his last 10 games.<\/span><\/p>\n

Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen<\/a> is the likely starter for the Sabres, who are 6-2-2 in their last 10 games. The surprising Sabres are going for the three-game season sweep of the Isles and keep pace with the Tampa Bay Lightning<\/a> for first place in the Atlantic Division. Tage Thompson<\/a> leads in goals (37), assists (39), and points (76) so far this season.<\/span><\/p>\n

This is a pivotal game for different reasons. However, the Sabres pick up the key win.<\/p>\n

Prediction: Sabres win 4-2.<\/em><\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

<\/smartframe-embed><\/p>\n

\n

<\/smartframe-embed><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

(Manny Flores\/Cal Sport Media)<\/span><\/p>\n

Dallas Stars vs Boston Bruins<\/h2>\n

Head-to-Head: Stars 1-0 Bruins<\/h3>\n

How to Watch:\u00a0<\/span>US TV: Victory+; Fox 4; NESN; ESPN+. Canada TV: Sportsnet+.<\/strong><\/amp-ad><\/amp-fx-flying-carpet><\/h3>\n

Time:<\/strong>\u00a07 <\/span>p.m. Eastern Daylight Time (EDT)<\/p>\n

Our second game of NHL predictions has the Dallas Stars<\/a> visiting the Boston Bruins.<\/a> Jake Oettinger<\/a> is the projected starter for the Stars, who are 4-4-2 in their last 10 games. This includes losses in four of their previous five games. Jason Robertson<\/a> and Wyatt Johnston<\/a> are tied for the team’s lead in goals with 40 each.<\/p>\n

Jeremy Swayman<\/a> is the expected starter for the Bruins, who are 6-2-2 in their last 10 games. Boston also has wins in four of its previous five games, including three consecutive wins. David Pastrnak<\/a> is putting together another great season with 29 goals and 63 assists for 92 points.<\/p>\n

The Bruins are coming in hot and should get another two points to help their Stanley Cup Playoff chances.<\/p>\n

Prediction: Bruins win 3-2.<\/em><\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

\n

<\/smartframe-embed><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

 <\/p>\n

\u00a0(Credit Image: \u00a9 Alex Cave\/ZUMA Press Wire)<\/span><\/p>\n

Carolina Hurricanes vs Columbus Blue Jackets<\/h2>\n

Head-to-Head: Hurricanes 1-1 Blue Jackets<\/h3>\n

How to Watch:\u00a0<\/span>US TV: Hulu; ESPN+. Canada TV: Sportsnet+.<\/strong><\/amp-ad><\/amp-fx-flying-carpet><\/h3>\n

Time:<\/strong> 7:30 <\/span>p.m. Eastern Daylight Time (EDT)<\/p>\n

Our last game of NHL predictions with another important matchup between the Carolina Hurricanes<\/a> and the Columbus Blue Jackets.<\/a> Brandon Bussi<\/a> is the projected starter for the Hurricanes, who are 6-4 in their previous 10 games. However, Carolina lost its last game to the Montreal Canadiens<\/a> on Sunday. Sebastian Aho<\/a> is tops in assists (49) and points (74).<\/p>\n

Jet Greaves<\/a> is the expected starter for the Blue Jackets, who are 5-3-2 in their previous 10 games. However, Columbus has lost its last three consecutive games to drop to the final wild card spot in the Eastern Conference. Kirill Marchenko<\/a> is first in goals (25) and points (61) for the Blue Jackets.<\/p>\n

Carolina is trying to secure first in the Eastern Conference while Columbus is trying to hold off the pack. However, the Canes should get the win.<\/p>\n

Prediction: Hurricanes win 5-2.<\/em><\/p>\n

Best Bets<\/h3>\n

We close out NHL predictions with some prop bets of the night. Let’s go back to our featured game of NHL predictions. The over\/under for the Islanders and the Sabres is 6.5, and we like the under in this game.<\/p>\n

As for individual props, take Mathew Barzal<\/a> to score a goal for the Islanders. On the Buffalo side of things, take Rasmus Dahlin<\/a> to get at least an assist in this game.<\/p>\n

Main photo by: Brad Penner-Imagn Images<\/p>\n

Please play responsibly, check for your local rules and age restrictions; some jurisdictions require ages 21+. Gambling problem? Call 1-800-GAMBLER.<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Welcome back to NHL Predictions. Each day, our writers here at\u00a0Last Word On Hockey look at the games and give in-depth analysis. Our team breaks down the key matchups, storylines, and stats, then makes predictions based on how they might play out. Our featured game of this edition is thane York Islanders taking on the […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2352,"featured_media":486510,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_lmt_disableupdate":"no","_lmt_disable":"","sfio_featured_image":false,"sfio_embed_code":"","_ef_editorial_meta_date_first-draft-date":"","_ef_editorial_meta_paragraph_assignment":"","_ef_editorial_meta_checkbox_needs-photo":"","_ef_editorial_meta_number_word-count":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[4524,3,4547,17,4548],"tags":[6081,6254,6010,6083,6124,6084],"class_list":["post-486495","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-nhl-predictions","category-sabres","category-hockey","category-islanders","category-nhl","tag-boston-bruins-predictions","tag-buffalo-sabres-predictions","tag-carolina-hurricanes-predictions","tag-columbus-blue-jackets-predictions","tag-dallas-stars-predictions","tag-new-york-islanders-predictions"],"modified_by":"Dan Mount, Editor","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/hockey\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/486495","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/hockey\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/hockey\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/hockey\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2352"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/hockey\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=486495"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/hockey\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/486495\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":486516,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/hockey\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/486495\/revisions\/486516"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/hockey\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/486510"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/hockey\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=486495"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/hockey\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=486495"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/hockey\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=486495"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}